NAME: C.J. Subko
CREATIVE FIELD: Author
WEBSITE: cjsubko.com
AUTHOR LINKS:
Newsletter: cjsubko.beehiiv.com
Bluesky: @cjsubko.bsky.social
AUTHOR BIO:
C.J. Subko is a dreamer and a dabbler. She has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, which makes her highly qualified to think too much. Her short fiction publications include Inner Worlds (May 2025), Small Wonders (November 2024), Penumbric Speculative (December 2025), and The Deadlands (April 2025). She is a member of the HWA, SFWA, and Codex. Her debut horror novella is coming out in October 2026. She can be found at www.cjsubko.com.
INTERVIEW
What got you into horror to begin with – what’s your core Horror memory?
My very first introduction was twofold. First, there were Grimm’s Fairy Tales, with their cut-off heels and people in barrels full of nails and all sorts of glorious body horror, which my mother read to me every night. I delighted in the sick notions and whimsy.
Then there was Relic (2006), which I watched as a six-year-old because, according to my parents, it was “just a monster movie.” There’s still a bathroom I dread going to at the Field Museum because of one scene. But instead of scaring me away, it thrilled me. I was sold.
Do you have a favourite horror subgenre (or more than one) and if so, what is it? What/Who are your favourite books/films/podcasts/artists/creatives working in that subgenre?
Supernatural/Paranormal and Religious, especially (but not exclusively) with those Catholic vibes (lapsed agnostic over here). Give me THE EXORCIST.
Give me BLESS THE CHILD.
Give me THE OMEN.
Give me THE VVITCH.
For someone who doesn’t believe in much, I’m quite bowled over by psychological, eerie portrayals of demons. I’ll watch anything quasi-religious. I heard Kylie Lee Baker is coming out with a demon book this year and I’m delighted.
What is the horror project of your heart – perhaps something you’ve already got out there, something you’re working on now, or something you’d like to do?
The project of my heart in horror is AND THE DARK WILL KNOW MY NAME, a story about a depressed woman who accidentally-on-purpose curses everyone she loves, then has to fight against a murderous doppelganger to save them all. It’s got a difficult character based on my own struggles with depression, and a real found family vibe.
Which 5 horror books can you not stop thinking about, or have influenced you most in some way? (If not books, you can pick 5 films, 5 pieces of art, 5 songs… or mix & match!)
1. Relic (2006 film): Monsters in the museum. It was filmed in Chicago and despite being a monster movie is very sparse and eerie with excellent jump scares.
2. The VVitch (film): Talk about sparse! Eggers’ candlelit epic has the bleak gray vibes I crave in a historical.
3. We Can Never Leave This Place (novella) by Eric LaRocca: My favorite of LaRocca’s works. A haunting, Weird exploration of war and trauma told with gory, gorgeous violence.
4. Midsommar (film): Ari Aster nailed the brightness and horror, a juxtaposition that makes this movie shocking and unsettling af.
5. The Year of the Witching (novel) by Alexis Henderson. Not horror per se but Gothic dark fantasy written beautifully with touches of darkness and rot.
6. [[I can’t follow rules]] The Exorcism of Emily Rose (film): My favorite exorcism movie. One of the few to scare the shit out of me.
If you had to describe the tones and themes of your own work in terms of movies, books, songs, or art, what would you choose and why?
It depends on whether I’m writing dark fantasy or contemporary. But I’d say my vibes are a mix:
1. Grimm’s Fairy Tales: whimsical, horrifying, fairy tale
2. Eric LaRocca: violent, unapologetic, brash, cruel
3. The VVitch: bleak, gray and black and white, sinister, seductive, feminist
4. The Exorcism of Emily Rose: Catholic, ritual, what is real?
5. Donnie Darko: haunting, psychological, surreal
6. “Sex Metal Barbie” by In This Moment: industrial, grating, raw
Introduce us to something you’ve created, and pitch it to the audience!
I’m quite excited about THE GHOST OF HIGHTOWER POND, my upcoming Gothic horror novella under the name Alice J. Ryan coming out October 13 2026. It’s my love of short stories and old spooky things made manifest.
Find out more: goodreads.com/book/show/254603388-the-ghost-of-hightower-pond
Leave a Reply